Well fuck, don't I fail. I promised you all blogs about art AND modeling on Mondays and Wednesdays, and although I had every intention to write a blog on Monday, the fun that comes with the Eve of Christmas got the better of me (aka I got drunk at 4pm and passed out by 11:30). To make up for that, I'm fusing my normal Model Monday post with an Art Wednesday blog to bring you...a...Monesday post!
Everyone faces competition at some point in their lives. Maybe you were on a sports team, or you had a friend who was as big an attention whore as you are, or you competed in the seventy-fifth Hunger Games. Regardless of how it happened, I'm sure for 99% of you, it HAS happened.
For probably...oh...75% of that 99% of you, you've experienced competition among your friends, or as most would say, "friendly competition". Most often it's not malicious, and in the end creates a stronger bond because you learn your relationship is more important than who gets that job offer you both interviewed for, or that "big break" in life.
But what happens when one party takes it too far? What happens when the competition no longer seems "friendly", and the two of you are locked in rivalry?
With me, I have to be pretty careful of this happening. I've let my jealousies get in the way of friendships and I'm sure I have friends who feel like they compete against me at times too. Not to sound cocky (okay maybe a little), but I can't imagine a friend wouldn't be jealous to see another friend showing off tummy and thighs for the whole Internet to see. I'd be jealous too. So, I take the following three steps to ensure that unfriendly rivalries and jealousies among friends don't happen, and here's what I do:
1. I make myself appear as human as possible, and I try very hard to be kind to everyone. I wear my emotions on my sleeve and I let my friends into my soul. If someone can see you have real thoughts and feelings and are a generally good person, it's a lot harder to hate you.
2. I make a point to encourage and boost the spirits of my friends. Anyone who's ever said "I wish I could be a model", I tell them I can get them set up and direct them. I don't ever tell someone they "can't" do something, even if I might get a little miffed because I consider what I do "my thing". If those friends are given information and direction and do nothing with it, it's on their asses, not mine.
3. I scope out my "rivals" and try to get to know them as people. To be the one attempting to make peace (even though your competition can be annoying as fuck) shows you're mature and NOT to be trifled with.
Usually, doing this helps and for the most part, I live out the modeling aspect of my life peacefully and without much conflict. These methods aren't a cure-all though, trust me. There are still a few people in my life that I have negative dynamics with. But hey, maybe you can try them out and see what works for you.
Discussion Question: Have you ever been jealous of a friend's success? Has it ever negatively impacted your relationship, or did you overcome it?
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